Local News 

Coronavirus update for March 15th: Jennings schools, Indiana Department of Health

Cody Collins

Indiana Department of Health

The Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) today reported four new presumptive positive cases of COVID-19, bringing to 19 the number of Hoosiers diagnosed through ISDH, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and private laboratories.

The new cases involve residents of Hamilton and Marion counties and have been included on ISDH’s online dashboard at https://www.in.gov/coronavirus/. Eleven counties now have cases. The dashboard will be updated daily at 10 a.m. Cases are listed by county of residence.

Links to coronavirus/COVID-19 information

Bartholomew County Emergency Management Department/Bartholomew County COVID-19 Task Force https://bartholomew.in.gov/emergency-management#covid-19

Indiana Department of Health – Latest information from ISDH https://www.in.gov/isdh/28470.htm

Cummins Engine Company – Cummins employees can access company information HERE.

Columbus Regional Health – https://www.crh.org/news

Bartholomew Consolidated School Corporation – https://www.bcscschools.org/COVID-19

City of Columbus –https://www.columbus.in.gov/covid-19-information/

Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives – https://resources.acce.org/crisismanagement

CDC – When and How to Wash Your Hands https://www.cdc.gov/handwashing/when-how-handwashing.html

CDC – El lavado de las manos: Las manos limpias salvan vidas https://www.cdc.gov/handwashing/esp/index.html

ISDH Online COVID-19 Case Tracker – https://www.in.gov/isdh/28470.htm

How to Prepare and Take Action for COVID-19 – https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/index.html

Jennings County School Corp. update

(Released on Friday, March 13th from Superintendent Teresa A. Brown)

We have spent the last few weeks learning about the coronavirus (COVID-19) and its possible  impact on our school community. This situation is very fluid and not only changes by the day, but by the hour. I have been working closely with our local Jennings County Health Department  to make proactive decisions to keep our students and staff healthy. Yesterday, I also met with the Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction and our School Board to receive input and provide updates on the COVID-19.

As I shared with you earlier this week, we have been  preparing, but not panicking, as we have been considering our next steps. After consulting with the Health Department and local health care professionals, we will be making the following changes within JCSC to respond proactively to COVID-19:

  • The week of March 16-20, will be an e-Learning week of school.
  • As you know March 23-27 is our Spring Break, which will still take place as planned.
  • The week of March 30-April 3 will be an e-Learning week of school.
  • When we are on e-Learning or closed, there will be no extra or co-curricular events or team practices/games.
  • Latchkey and afterschool programs are also cancelled.
  • All field trips will be suspended until further notice. As this situation is evolving, we
    may not be able to guarantee a full refund from agencies outside our control, but we will work to have as much money refunded as possible.
  • • On Monday, March 16, parents or guardians can pick up any medicine needed
    between 8:00 am to 10:00 am in school offices.
  • We will be providing 5 breakfasts and 5 lunches each e-Learning week to any child
    under 18 years of age. Parents/guardians will be able to pick up food on Thursdays,
    March 19 and April 2, from 11:00-1:00 pm at their child’s school or 5:00-6:00 pm at
    Jennings County High School. The pick-up will be a drive-through line outside the
    school offices. This will allow us to maintain time and temperature controls needed.

(On Thursday), Governor Holcomb approved 20 days, which can be used to waive our 180 instructional day requirement. We are going to use our 10 planned e-Learning Days for the two planned weeks. This will allow us to have the additional 20 waiver days, which can be used at a later time, if needed, and prevent us from having to extend the school year. While I understand these closures may create a hardship for our families, our goal is to keep our community safe.

Each one of us has a responsibility to protect those most vulnerable.

Indiana Department of Insurance update

The Indiana Department of Insurance is addressing concerns that facilities that provide services such as childcare and meals to the community will lose their liability insurance if they remain open during the COVID-19 pandemic. There is no reason to believe that any carrier would be or is denying coverage at this time.

Insurance companies cannot cancel coverage without filing an endorsement change in the terms of the policy with the Department. Commissioner Stephen W. Robertson stated that the Department will aggressively support those facilities if their commercial insurance carrier attempts to deny their liability insurance without approval. 

At this time, childcare facilities will maintain liability insurance if they choose to remain open and follow their normal protocol for children who may have an illness. Any facility that has a question about their coverage may contact the Department on Monday during normal business hours at 317-234-8582.